-$Cambridge: exim/doc/doc-txt/NewStuff,v 1.31 2005/03/29 14:19:21 ph10 Exp $
+$Cambridge: exim/doc/doc-txt/NewStuff,v 1.120 2006/11/06 15:50:12 ph10 Exp $
New Features in Exim
--------------------
-This file contains descriptions of new features that have been added to Exim,
-but have not yet made it into the main manual (which is most conveniently
-updated when there is a relatively large batch of changes). The doc/ChangeLog
-file contains a listing of all changes, including bug fixes.
+This file contains descriptions of new features that have been added to Exim.
+Before a formal release, there may be quite a lot of detail so that people can
+test from the snapshots or the CVS before the documentation is updated. Once
+the documentation is updated, this file is reduced to a short list.
-Version 4.51
+Version 4.64
------------
-PH/01 The format in which GnuTLS parameters are written to the gnutls-param
- file in the spool directory has been changed. This change has been made
- to alleviate problems that some people had with the generation of the
- parameters by Exim when /dev/random was exhausted. In this situation,
- Exim would hang until /dev/random acquired some more entropy.
+1. ACL variables can now be given arbitrary names, as long as they start with
+ "acl_c" or "acl_m" (for connection variables and message variables), are
+ at least six characters long, with the sixth character being either a digit
+ or an underscore. The rest of the name can contain alphanumeric characters
+ and underscores. This is a compatible change because the old set of
+ variables such as acl_m12 are a subset of the allowed names. There may now
+ be any number of ACL variables. For example:
- The new code exports and imports the DH and RSA parameters in PEM
- format. This means that the parameters can be generated externally using
- the certtool command that is part of GnuTLS.
+ set acl_c13 = value for original ACL variable
+ set acl_c13b = whatever
+ set acl_m_foo = something
- To replace the parameters with new ones, instead of deleting the file
- and letting Exim re-create it, you can generate new parameters using
- certtool and, when this has been done, replace Exim's cache file by
- renaming. The relevant commands are something like this:
+ What happens if a syntactically valid but undefined ACL variable is
+ referenced depends on the setting of the strict_acl_vars option. If it is
+ false (the default), an empty string is substituted; if it is true, an error
+ is generated. This affects all ACL variables, including the "old" ones such
+ as acl_c4. (Previously there wasn't the concept of an undefined ACL
+ variable.)
- # rm -f new.params
- # touch new.params
- # chown exim:exim new.params
- # chmod 0400 new.params
- # certtool --generate-privkey --bits 512 >new.params
- # echo "" >>new.params
- # certtool --generate-dh-params --bits 1024 >> new.params
- # mv new.params params
+ The implementation has been done in such a way that spool files containing
+ ACL variable settings written by previous releases of Exim are compatible
+ and can be read by the new release. If only the original numeric names are
+ used, spool files written by the new release can be read by earlier
+ releases.
- If Exim never has to generate the parameters itself, the possibility of
- stalling is removed.
+2. There is a new ACL modifier called log_reject_target. It makes it possible
+ to specify which logs are used for messages about ACL rejections. Its
+ argument is a list of words which can be "main", "reject", or "panic". The
+ default is "main:reject". The list may be empty, in which case a rejection
+ is not logged at all. For example, this ACL fragment writes no logging
+ information when access is denied:
-PH/02 A new expansion item for dynamically loading and calling a locally-
- written C function is now provided, if Exim is compiled with
+ deny <some conditions>
+ log_reject_target =
- EXPAND_DLFUNC=yes
+ The modifier can be used in SMTP and non-SMTP ACLs. It applies to both
+ permanent and temporary rejections.
- set in Local/Makefile. The facility is not included by default (a
- suitable error is given if you try to use it when it is not there.)
+3. There is a new authenticator called "dovecot". This is an interface to the
+ authentication facility of the Dovecot POP/IMAP server, which can support a
+ number of authentication methods. If you are using Dovecot to authenticate
+ POP/IMAP clients, it might be helpful to use the same mechanisms for SMTP
+ authentication. This is a server authenticator only. The only option is
+ server_socket, which must specify the socket which is the interface to
+ Dovecot authentication. The public_name option must specify an
+ authentication mechanism that Dovecot is configured to support. You can have
+ several authenticators for different mechanisms. For example:
- If you enable EXPAND_DLFUNC, you should also be aware of the new redirect
- router option forbid_filter_dlfunc. If you have unprivileged users on
- your system who are permitted to create filter files, you might want to
- set forbid_filter_dlfunc=true in the appropriate router, to stop them
- using ${dlfunc to run code within Exim.
+ dovecot_plain:
+ driver = dovecot
+ public_name = PLAIN
+ server_name = /var/run/dovecot/auth-client
+ server_setid = $auth1
- You load and call an external function like this:
+ dovecot_ntlm:
+ driver = dovecot
+ public_name = NTLM
+ server_name = /var/run/dovecot/auth-client
+ server_setid = $auth1
- ${dlfunc{/some/file}{function}{arg1}{arg2}...}
+ If the SMTP connection is encrypted, or if $sender_host_address is equal to
+ $interface_address (that is, the connection is local), the "secured" option
+ is passed in the Dovecot authentication command. If, for a TLS connection, a
+ client certificate has been verified, the "valid-client-cert" option is
+ passed.
- Once loaded, Exim remembers the dynamically loaded object so that it
- doesn't reload the same object file in the same Exim process (but of
- course Exim does start new processes frequently).
+4. The variable $message_headers_raw provides a concatenation of all the
+ messages's headers without any decoding. This is in contrast to
+ $message_headers, which does RFC2047 decoding on the header contents.
- There may be from zero to eight arguments to the function. When compiling
- a local function that is to be called in this way, local_scan.h should be
- included. The Exim variables and functions that are defined by that API
- are also available for dynamically loaded functions. The function itself
- must have the following type:
+5. In a DNS black list, when the facility for restricting the matching IP
+ values is used, the text from the TXT record that is set in $dnslist_text
+ may not reflect the true reason for rejection. This happens when lists are
+ merged and the IP address in the A record is used to distinguish them;
+ unfortunately there is only one TXT record. One way round this is not to use
+ merged lists, but that can be inefficient because it requires multiple DNS
+ lookups where one would do in the vast majority of cases when the host of
+ interest is not on any of the lists.
- int dlfunction(uschar **yield, int argc, uschar *argv[])
+ A less inefficient way of solving this problem has now been implemented. If
+ two domain names, comma-separated, are given, the second is used first to do
+ an initial check, making use of any IP value restrictions that are set. If
+ there is a match, the first domain is used, without any IP value
+ restrictions, to get the TXT record. As a byproduct of this, there is also a
+ check that the IP being tested is indeed on the first list. The first domain
+ is the one that is put in $dnslist_domain. For example:
- Where "uschar" is a typedef for "unsigned char" in local_scan.h. The
- function should return one of the following values:
+ reject message = rejected because $sender_ip_address is blacklisted \
+ at $dnslist_domain\n$dnslist_text
+ dnslists = sbl.spamhaus.org,sbl-xbl.spamhaus.org=127.0.0.2 : \
+ dul.dnsbl.sorbs.net,dnsbl.sorbs.net=127.0.0.10
- OK Success. The string that is placed in "yield" is put into
- the expanded string that is being built.
+ For the first blacklist item, this starts by doing a lookup in
+ sbl-xbl.spamhaus.org and testing for a 127.0.0.2 return. If there is a
+ match, it then looks in sbl.spamhaus.org, without checking the return value,
+ and as long as something is found, it looks for the corresponding TXT
+ record. If there is no match in sbl-xbl.spamhaus.org, nothing more is done.
+ The second blacklist item is processed similarly.
- FAIL A non-forced expansion failure occurs, with the error
- message taken from "yield", if it is set.
+ If you are interested in more than one merged list, the same list must be
+ given several times, but because the results of the DNS lookups are cached,
+ the DNS calls themselves are not repeated. For example:
- FAIL_FORCED A forced expansion failure occurs, with the error message
- taken from "yield" if it is set.
+ reject dnslists = http.dnsbl.sorbs.net,dnsbl.sorbs.net=127.0.0.2 : \
+ socks.dnsbl.sorbs.net,dnsbl.sorbs.net=127.0.0.3 : \
+ misc.dnsbl.sorbs.net,dnsbl.sorbs.net=127.0.0.4 : \
+ dul.dnsbl.sorbs.net,dnsbl.sorbs.net=127.0.0.10
- ERROR Same as FAIL, except that a panic log entry is written.
+ In this case there is a lookup in dnsbl.sorbs.net, and if none of the IP
+ values matches (or if no record is found), this is the only lookup that is
+ done. Only if there is a match is one of the more specific lists consulted.
- When compiling a function that is to be used in this way with gcc,
- you need to add -shared to the gcc command. Also, in the Exim build-time
- configuration, you must add -export-dynamic to EXTRALIBS.
+6. All authenticators now have a server_condition option. Previously, only
+ plaintext had this, and this has not changed: it must be set to the
+ authenticator as a server. For the others, if server_condition is set, it is
+ expanded if authentication is successful, and treated exactly as it is in
+ plaintext. This can serve as a means of adding authorization to an
+ authenticator.
-TF/01 $received_time is a new expansion variable containing the time and date
- as a number of seconds since the start of the Unix epoch when the
- current message was received.
+7. There is a new command-line option called -Mset. It is useful only in
+ conjunction with -be (that is, when testing string expansions). It must be
+ followed by a message id; Exim loads the given message from its spool before
+ doing the expansions, thus setting message-specific variables such as
+ $message_size and the header variables. The $recipients variable is
+ available. This feature is provided to make it easier to test expansions
+ that make use of these variables. However, Exim must be called by an admin
+ user when -Mset is used.
-PH/03 There is a new value for RADIUS_LIB_TYPE that can be set in
- Local/Makefile. It is RADIUSCLIENTNEW, and it requests that the new API,
- in use from radiusclient 0.4.0 onwards, be used. It does not appear to be
- possible to detect the different versions automatically.
+8. Another similar new command-line option is called -bem. It operates like -be
+ except that it must be followed by the name of a file. For example:
+ exim -bem /tmp/testmessage
-Version 4.50
+ The file is read as a message (as if receiving a locally-submitted non-SMTP
+ message) before any of the test expansions are done. Thus, message-specific
+ variables such as $message_size and $h_from: are available. However, no
+ Received: header is added to the message. If the -t option is set,
+ recipients are read from the headers in the normal way, and are shown in the
+ $recipients variable. Note that recipients cannot be given on the command
+ line, because further arguments are taken as strings to expand (just like
+ -be).
+
+9. When an address is delayed because of a 4xx response to a RCPT command, it
+ is now the combination of sender and recipient that is delayed in subsequent
+ queue runs until its retry time is reached. You can revert to the previous
+ behavious, that is, delay the recipient independent of the sender, by
+ setting address_retry_include_sender=false in the smtp transport. However,
+ this can lead to problems with servers that regularly issue 4xx responses to
+ RCPT commands.
+
+
+
+Version 4.63
+------------
+
+1. There is a new Boolean option called filter_prepend_home for the redirect
+ router.
+
+2. There is a new acl, set by acl_not_smtp_start, which is run right at the
+ start of receiving a non-SMTP message, before any of the message has been
+ read.
+
+3. When an SMTP error message is specified in a "message" modifier in an ACL,
+ or in a :fail: or :defer: message in a redirect router, Exim now checks the
+ start of the message for an SMTP error code.
+
+4. There is a new parameter for LDAP lookups called "referrals", which takes
+ one of the settings "follow" (the default) or "nofollow".
+
+5. Version 20070721.2 of exipick now included, offering these new options:
+ --reverse
+ After all other sorting options have bee processed, reverse order
+ before displaying messages (-R is synonym).
+ --random
+ Randomize order of matching messages before displaying.
+ --size
+ Instead of displaying the matching messages, display the sum
+ of their sizes.
+ --sort <variable>[,<variable>...]
+ Before displaying matching messages, sort the messages according to
+ each messages value for each variable.
+ --not
+ Negate the value for every test (returns inverse output from the
+ same criteria without --not).
+
+
+Version 4.62
+------------
+
+1. The ${readsocket expansion item now supports Internet domain sockets as well
+ as Unix domain sockets. If the first argument begins "inet:", it must be of
+ the form "inet:host:port". The port is mandatory; it may be a number or the
+ name of a TCP port in /etc/services. The host may be a name, or it may be an
+ IP address. An ip address may optionally be enclosed in square brackets.
+ This is best for IPv6 addresses. For example:
+
+ ${readsocket{inet:[::1]:1234}{<request data>}...
+
+ Only a single host name may be given, but if looking it up yield more than
+ one IP address, they are each tried in turn until a connection is made. Once
+ a connection has been made, the behaviour is as for ${readsocket with a Unix
+ domain socket.
+
+2. If a redirect router sets up file or pipe deliveries for more than one
+ incoming address, and the relevant transport has batch_max set greater than
+ one, a batch delivery now occurs.
+
+3. The appendfile transport has a new option called maildirfolder_create_regex.
+ Its value is a regular expression. For a maildir delivery, this is matched
+ against the maildir directory; if it matches, Exim ensures that a
+ maildirfolder file is created alongside the new, cur, and tmp directories.
+
+
+Version 4.61
------------
-The documentation is up-to-date for the 4.50 release.
+The documentation is up-to-date for the 4.61 release. Major new features since
+the 4.60 release are:
+
+. An option called disable_ipv6, to disable the use of IPv6 completely.
+
+. An increase in the number of ACL variables to 20 of each type.
+
+. A change to use $auth1, $auth2, and $auth3 in authenticators instead of $1,
+ $2, $3, (though those are still set) because the numeric variables get used
+ for other things in complicated expansions.
+
+. The default for rfc1413_query_timeout has been changed from 30s to 5s.
+
+. It is possible to use setclassresources() on some BSD OS to control the
+ resources used in pipe deliveries.
+
+. A new ACL modifier called add_header, which can be used with any verb.
+
+. More errors are detectable in retry rules.
+
+There are a number of other additions too.
+
+
+Version 4.60
+------------
+
+The documentation is up-to-date for the 4.60 release. Major new features since
+the 4.50 release are:
+
+. Support for SQLite.
+
+. Support for IGNOREQUOTA in LMTP.
+
+. Extensions to the "submission mode" features.
+
+. Support for Client SMTP Authorization (CSA).
+
+. Support for ratelimiting hosts and users.
+
+. New expansion items to help with the BATV "prvs" scheme.
+
+. A "match_ip" condition, that matches an IP address against a list.
+
+There are many more minor changes.
****
git://git.exim.org / exim.git / blobdiff